The Sheikh of Terror

"The Diplomatic Sheikh" is what Western diplomats dubbed Hassan Rohani during his tenure from 2003 to 2005 as Iran's chief nuclear negotiator. The nickname was quickly picked up by the American press upon Mr. Rohani's election Saturday as Iran's next president. It complemented Mr. Rohani's newly minted reputation as a "moderate" and a "reformer." But the Iranian dissidents whose assassination he oversaw would find the label inapt—that is if they were still around to object.